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TAPESTRY  WORKS  OF  WM.  BAUMGARTEN  & CO., 
WILLI AMSBRIDGE,  N,  Y, 


A SHORT  RESUME 


OF  THE 

HISTORY  OF  TAPESTRY  MAKING 

IN  THE 


PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


PRINTED  BY 

STYLES  A CASH,  77  EIGHTH  AVENUE, 
NEW  YORK. 


A LECTURE 


HELD  BEFORE  THE  SOCIETY  OF  ANTIQUARIANS, 
AT  THE  ART  INSTITUTE,  CHICAGO, 
MARCH  25TH,  1897. 


BY 


WILLIAM  BAUMGARTEN. 


PAINTING  THE  CARTOONS. 


THE  making  of  tapestry  in  this  country  is  only  of 
very  recent  date,  and  to  my  knowledge  it  had 
never  been  attempted  until  I set  up  the  first  loom  in 
my  ateliers  in  New  York,  in  the  month  of  February, 
1893.  To  my  friends  it  seemed  a rather  bold  and  haz- 
ardous enterprise,  because  the  very  idea  of  tapestry 
making  is  at  the  present  time  so  intimately  connected 
with  France,  and  associated  with  the  Gobelin  Works  in 
Paris,  and  France  is  considered  so  absolutely  its  right- 
ful home,  that  they  did  not  believe  there  was  any 
hope  of  success  for  my  attempt,  and  those  who  were 
not  my  friends  thought  it  too  ridiculous,  and  predicted, 
of  course,  a dismal  failure. 

We  are  now  four  years  at  work,  and  have  rapidly  in- 
creased the  size  of  our  ateliers  and  the  number  of  our 
looms  to  over  twenty,  and  the  number  of  persons  em- 
ployed to  about  forty.  I shall,  in  the  course  of  my  lec- 
ture, give  you  a little  sketch  of  how  we  work,  what  we 
make,  where  it  is  done,  etc.,  and,  by  the  help  of  the 
camera,  will  try  to  give  you  a lucid  picture  of  it  all. 
Before  proceeding,  however,  with  the  description  of 


7 


our  own  tapestry  making,  it  may  be  of  interest  to  my 
audience  to  listen  to  a short  resume  on  the  history 
of  tapestry  in  the  past,  and  its  present  condition  in 
Europe.* 

As  you  all  know,  Tapestry  is  a fabric  worked  on  a 
chain  of  threads  which  are  drawn  either  vertically, 
haute  lisse , or  horizontally  basse  lisse , and  around  which 
are  woven  the  colored  threads  of  wool  or  silk,  thus 
making  one  body,  and  producing  a stuff  in  which  the 
lines  and  tints  form  combinations  analogous  to  those 
which  the  painter  obtains  with  his  brush,  the  mosaic 
worker  with  pieces  of  colored  marble,  the  enameler 
with  cloisons  filled  with  vitrifiable  materials.  The  lay- 
ing in  of  the  colored  threads  is  done  entirely  by  hand, 
and  the  weaver  follows  line  by  line  the  painting  he  is  to 
copy.  The  difference  between  Tapestry  and  Embroid- 
ery is  this  : In  Tapestry  the  figures  or  pictures  form 

an  integral  part  of  the  stuff  itself,  while  in  Embroidery 
the  figure  or  ornament  is  put  on  a stuff  already  existing ; 
and  Tapestry  is  distinguished  from  woven  stuffs  in  that 
it  is  entirely  made  by  hand,  and  not  by  means  of  a me- 
chanical loom  which  repeats  endlessly  the  same  design. 
Each  piece  of  Tapestry  is  an  original  hand  work,  even 

* The  information  herein  given  was  largely  derived  from  the  works  of  Eugene 
Muntz,  Ed.  Guichard,  Alfred  Darcel,  and  others. 


8 


where  the  same  cartoons  are  copied  many  times.  It 
has  been  aptly  called  “ Painting  by  textile  materials,” 
and  justly  so,  for  while  by  the  freedom  in  its  mode  of 
manufacture  it  is  far  ahead  of  Embroidery  (which  is, 
above  all,  a work  of  patience,  and  which  admits  of  no 
end  of  retouching),  it  is  also  superior  to  Embroidery  in 
that  it  leaves  the  weaver  a certain  amount  of  his  indi- 
vidual interpretation,  for  he  really  translates,  interprets 
and  transposes  in  other  tones  the  models  or  cartoons 
which  the  painter  composes  for  him. 

The  art  of  transmitting  figures  or  ornamental  designs 
on  the  loom  is  probably  as  old  as  to  paint  them  on  the 
wall  or  panel.  Egypt,  which  is  the  cradle  of  so  many 
industries,  knew  at  an  early  age  the  art  of  ornamenting 
fabrics  by  weaving,  embroidery,  and  the  application  of 
colors.  In  the  subterraneous  temple  at  Beni-Hassan 
the  wall  paintings,  which  date  back  3,000  years  B.  C., 
show  the  representation  of  an  upright  loom  which,  in 
its  general  arrangement,  is  singularly  similar  to  those 
which  are  now  in  use  at  the  Gobelin  Works  ; upright 
chain,  cross  beam,  comb  to  ram  down  and  to  even  the 
threads,  etc. , all  the  elements  of  the  “ Haute  lisse”  loom 
are  there.  Nor  are  there  historical  proofs  wanting  that 
the  Egyptians  at  the  time  of  the  Pharaohs  produced 
fabrics  of  extraordinary  richness  and  fineness,  which  had 


9 


no  reason  to  be  envious  of  our  modern  industry.  The 
same  may  be  said  of  Western  Asia  and  Greece.  The 
ancient  authors  are  unanimous  in  proclaiming  the 
magnificence  displayed  by  Babylon  and  Nineveh  in 
textile  hangings,  embroideries  and  carpets.  You  have 
all  read  in  the  book  “ Esther  ” the  description  of  the 
feast  given  by  Ahasuerus,  of  the  magnificent  hangings 
of  sky-blue,  of  white  and  hyacinth,  suspended  on  pur- 
ple cords,  with  silver  rings,  from  white  marble  columns. 

The  ability  of  Babylonian  tapestry  weavers  equaled 
the  magnificent  compositions  of  her  artists  which  they 
transmitted  on  their  looms,  and  the  richness  of  the 
materials  which  they  used.  Plinius  does  not  hesitate 
to  claim  for  them  the  honor  of  having  carried  to  the 
highest  point  the  art  of  blending  colors  in  fabrics.  He 
adds,  that  owing  to  their  superiority  these  fabrics  were 
given  the  name  of  u Babylonians/’  the  same  as  we  to- 
day call  tapestries  generally  “ Gobelins.”  In  fact  the 
words,  “ Babylonica  peristromata  ” occur  at  every  in- 
stant under  the  pens  of  the  Latin  poets,  who  cannot 
find  praise  enough  to  celebrate  them.  The  amateurs  in 
Rome  bought  these  tapestries  for  their  weight  in  gold. 
Metellus  Scipio  paid  800,000  sesterces  ($40,000)  for 
44  Triclinaria  Babylonica,”  and  Nero  paid  for  these 
same  hangings  four  million  Sesterces  ($200,000), 


10 


FIRST  ATELIER  OPENED  AT  WILLI  AM  SBRIDGE,  1893. 


I will  not  detain  you  longer  with  antiquity,  although 
much  might  be  said  on  our  subject  with  the  Greeks  dur- 
ing the  time  of  Phidias  and  Alexander,  and  the  Plebrews 
under  Solomon  and  Herodes,  who  rebuilt  the  temple  19 
years  before  our  era,  all  of  whom  witnessed  a state  of 
great  splendor  in  the  production  of  tapestries  and  other 
textile  fabrics. 

I will  also  pass  over  the  long  line  of  centuries  since 
the  Roman  Empire,  when  the  secret  of  the  tapestry 
loom  seems  almost  to  have  been  lost,  and  come  down  to 
more  modern  times. 

The  oldest  pieces  of  real  tapestry  which  are  now 
extant  do  not  date  back  further  than  the  end  of  the 
twelfth  century.  There  are  only  a few — two  are  in  the 
Cathedral  of  Halberstadt,  in  Germany.  They  hang 
above  the  stalls  of  the  choir,  are  each  43  feet  long  by 
3^  feet  high,  and  represent  scenes  from  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, also  “Christ  and  the  Twelve  Apostles,”  “St. 
George  killing  the  Dragon,”  an  Emperor,  with  the 
inscription,  “ Carolus  Rex,”  etc.  Another  tapestry  was 
in  Cologne  in  the  Church  St.  Gereon,  the  three  frag- 
ments of  which  were  sold  by  the  Canon  of  the  Church 
to  the  Museums  of  Lyons,  Nuremburg,  and  the  South 
Kensington,  where  they  are  preserved  to-day.  Un- 
doubted evidence  exists  that  all  these  specimens  were 


produced  in  Germany  about  the  year  1200,  and  accord- 
ing to  the  best  connoisseurs,  such  as  Mr.  Darcel,  Direc- 
tor of  the  Gobelin  Works,  they  were  woven  on  what  is 
called  the  “ Haute-lisse  ” loom. 

DURING  THE  XIIIth  CENTURY 
the  art  of  tapestry-making  is  supposed  to  have  found 
its  re-birth,  and  according  to  the  old  historians  many 
important  specimens  must  have  been  produced,  but 
only  one  panel  is  now  existing  from  that  period,  and  it 
is  likewise  in  Germany  in  the  Abbey  of  Quedlinburg. 
It  represents  the  marriage  of  Mercury  and  Philology, 
and  was  executed  by  the  Abbess  Agnes,  assisted  by 
her  nuns. 

THE  XIVth  CENTURY 
sees  the  rise  of  our  Art  into  great  strength  and  import- 
ance, especially  in  France  and  Flandres.  Paris,  Arras, 
and  Brussels  secure  for  themselves  the  supremacy, 
owing  to  the  ability  of  their  weavers.  The  rest  of 
Europe  imperceptibly  accustoms  itself  to  apply  for 
their  supplies  to  these  better  organized  centers,  and 
gradually  unlearns  the  technique  with  which  it  was  so 
familiar.  When  150  years  later  Italy,  Spain,  England 
and  Germany  tried  to  free  themselves  from  the  heavy 
tribute  to  foreign  makers,  they  had  to  send  for  Franco- 


12 


Flemish  craftsmen  to  teach  them  anew  the  secrets 
which  these  had  made  their  own  by  a century  of 
practice. 

With  the  beginning  of  the  reign  of  Charles  V. 
(1364-1380)  the  history  of  art  really  takes  form,  and 
from  this  time  on  one  can  follow  the  works  of  the  artists 
attached  to  the  service  of  the  King  and  study  original 
monuments  preserved  in  the  Gardemeubles  of  the 
French  government.  The  most  famous  Tappissier  of 
this  period  was  Nicolas  Bataille  of  Paris,  who  in 
thirteen  years  produced  for  the  Duke  of  Burgundy 
alone  250  pieces  of  great  magnificence,  woven  in  gold 
threads  and  fine  Arras  silk.  Together  with  his  con- 
frere Jacques  Dourdin,  they  supplied  the  King,  his 
brothers,  his  uncles,  and  many  foreign  sovereigns  with 
numberless  tapestries,  all  as  precious  in  quality  as  in- 
teresting in  subjects. 

It  would  be  impossible  here  to  give  any  further  de- 
tails of  the  works  of  these  two  remarkable  artists,  but 
it  may  be  interesting  to  know  that  the  remuneration 
they  received  for  their  best  tapestries,  woven  with  gold 
threads,  was  about  $350  per  square  yard  in  our  money 
value.  Nor  did  the  Flemish  ateliers  show  any  less 
activity  than  their  French  competitors,  and  the  town 
of  Arras  rose  to  such  high  reputation  through  the 


13 


superiority  of  her  dyes  and  her  fabrics  that  the  con- 
temporaries designated  by  “ Arras-tapestry  ” or  “Ar- 
azzi”  the  most  perfect,  the  richest  and  most  precious 
tapestries  which  were  then  made. 

THE  XVth  CENTURY 

Is  the  golden  age  of  tapestry  making.  The  ateliers 
of  Northern  France  and  Flanders  rise  to  a height  and 
attain  a perfection  hitherto  unknown.  The  whole  of 
Europe  testifies  its  admiration  by  lavishing  its  orders 
upon  them,  or  hiring  their  master  workman.  Hence- 
forth there  was  no  fete  where  Arras  hangings  were  not 
given  the  place  of  honor ; were  it  the  coronation  of  an 
Emperor,  a King,  or  a Pope,  the  canonization  of  a Saint, 
a triumphal  entry,  a tournament,  a marriage,  or  a sim- 
ple banquet — everywhere  appeared  masses  of  these  soft 
and  silky  hangings  of  brilliant  coloring.  Powerful 
monarchs  did  not  blush  to  borrow,  when  their  own 
stock  was  exhausted,  additional  pieces  from  their 
neighbors  to  do  honor  to  some  guest  of  distinction. 
They  were  taken  along  in  travel — yes,  even  in  war — 
witness  the  tapestries  of  Charles  the  Bold  which  were 
found  on  the  battlefield  by  the  Swiss  victors  and  fur- 
nished the  most  precious  trophy  of  their  victory,  Eng- 
land, Spain  and  Italy  were  not  behind  to  rival  in  that 
respect  with  the  Kings  of  France  and  the  Dukes  of  Bur- 


14 


ADDITIONAL  ATELIERS  ERECTED  1894, 


f 


! 


gundy.  In  Rome,  at  the  inauguration  of  the  newly 
elected  Pope,  the  procession  received  its  greatest 
splendor  from  the  imposing  display  of  tapestries  along 
its  passage  from  the  Vatican  to  the  Lateran.  Every- 
where, North  and  South,  one  can  see  even  the  most 
humble  towns  deck  themselves  as  if  by  magic  with 
tapestry  hangings  to  receive  a victorious  general  or  an 
allied  Prince.  No  other  ornament  could  have  lent  itself 
to  such  varied  combinations  as  these  movable,  undulat- 
ing paintings  which  seemed  somehow  alive. 

In  the  preceding  century  we  have  seen  Pairs  fairly 
rival  with  Arras,  but  in  the  XVth  century  it  was  totally 
eclipsed  by  the  latter  city,  which  in  its  turn  was  destined 
to  succumb  before  the  rising  greatness  of  Brussels  by 
the  end  of  this  same  century.  Arras  was  the  center 
where  especially  the  Princes  of  the  house  of  Burgundy 
recruited  their  supplies.  The  list  of  tapestries  which 
Philip  the  Good  and  Charles  the  Bold  alone  had  pro- 
duced in  this  city  would  be  too  long  to  be  enumerated 
here,  suffice  it  to  say  that  from  1423  to  1467  the  City  of 
Arras  counted  not  less  than  fifty-nine  master  weavers 
with  several  thousand  workmen.  The  taking  of  the 
city  by  Louis  XI.  in  1477,  and  the  expulsion  of  her  in- 
habitants in  1479  gave  a death  blow  to  her  industry 
from  which  she  did  not  recuperate. 


15 


Of  Brussels,  we  have  record  that  the  guild  of  tapes- 
try weavers  were  reorganized  in  1448  under  the  name  of 
the  “Legwerckers  Ambacht.  ” The  statutes  were  very 
strict,  and  provided,  among  other  things,  that  each 
master  could  have  only  one  apprentice  outside  of  his 
own  children.  A stranger  could  work  in  Brussels,  if  he 
could  show  that  he  had  learned  the  trade  for  three 
years  in  some  other  town,  and  the  most  rigorous  mea- 
sures were  taken  to  ensure  the  good  execution  of  tapes- 
tries. No  tapestry  was  allowed  to  be  sold  without 
having  been  examined,  approved  and  sealed.  The 
earliest  mention  of  a tapestry  purchased  at  Brussels  by 
the  House  of  Burgundy  dates  back  to  1466.  In  that 
year  Philip  the  good  acquired  a series  of  the  “ His- 
tory of  Hannibal  ” in  six  pieces,  and  a series  of  eight  ver- 
dures. It  is  certain  that  from  this  time  on  the  Brussels 
ateliers  rivaled  with  those  of  Arras,  till  they  finally 
superseded  them  entirely. 

The  mass  of  Franco-Flemish  productions  which  have 
come  down  to  us  is  so  great  that  it  would  be  difficult, 
if  not  an  impossible  task  to  even  classify  them,  or  to 
describe  the  distinctive  features  of  the  products  of  each 
of  the  great  centers  of  manufacture,  such  as  Brussels, 
Arras,  Lille,  Bruges,  Tournai,  Oudenarde,  etc.  It  can, 
however,  be  affirmed  that  towards  the  end  of  the  XVth 


16 


ONE  OF  THE  WALL  PANELS  OF  VERDURE  TAPESTRY  EXECUTED  FOR 
THE  LARGE  DINING  ROOM  OF  THE  MANHATTAN  HOTEL. 

6 ft.  3 in.  high  x 14  ft.  6 in.  wide. 


century  tapestry  had  reached  a degree  of  perfection 
which  has  not  since  been  surpassed. 

If  one  examines  the  “ Mass  of  St.  Gregory  ” in  the 
Nuremburg  Museum,  or  the  “ Triumph  and  the  Mar- 
riage of  Beatrice,”  in  the  collection  of  the  late  Sir 
Richard  Wallace,  or  the  religious  compositions  of  the 
now  dispersed  famous  Spitzer  collection,  one  acquires 
the  conviction  that  it  is  impossible  to  carry  technical 
ability  further.  In  precision  of  design,  the  splendor 
and  harmony  of  colors,  the  weavers  of  this  time  can  have 
absolutely  nothing  to  learn  from  their  successors,  and 
the  “Marriage  of  Beatrice”  can  safely  be  put  next  to  the 
‘ 4 Marriage  of  Louis  XIV,  ” the  chef  d’oeuvre  of  Le  Brun. 

The  history  of  the  XVth  century  would  not  be  com- 
plete without  mentioning  Italy  where  the  Flemish 
industry  exercised  the  greatest  influence  and  was  the 
direct  cause  of  the  establishment  of  many  important 
ateliers.  From  1420  to  1500  whole  swarms  of  emigrant 
tapestry  weavers  settled  in  Italy,  coming  from  Arras, 
Lille,  Bruges,  Tournai,  Brussels.  The  Dukes  of  Fer- 
rare,  Urbino,  Mantua,  as  well  as  Venice,  Tuscany  and 
Umbria  started  tapestry  ateliers.  But  while  Italy  pro- 
cured its  artisans  from  Flandres,  her  own  artists  began 
to  provide  cartoons,  and  thus  becomes  henceforth  a very 
important  factor  in  the  development  of  our  Art.  Soon 


17 


Italy  produced  works  that  equalled  the  best  produc- 
tions of  Arras  and  Brussels,  which  is  not  astonishing 
when  one  reads  that  the  authors  of  these  cartoons  were 
called  Cosimo  Tura,  Andrea  Mantegna,  Leonardo  da 
Vinci,  etc.  Not  only  that,  but  heaps  of  cartoons  paint- 
ed by  the  greatest  Italian  artists  were  sent  to  Flandres, 
there  to  be  executed  by  Flemish  workmen,  and  thus 
the  way  was  paved  for  the  commencement  and  intro- 
duction of  the  Renaissance. 

THE  XVI th  CENTURY 

consecrated  the  part  which  the  middle  ages  had  assigned 
to  the  tapestry.  In  the  public  festivals,  as  well  as  in 
the  interior  decorations,  tapestry  continued  to  hold  first 
rank  ; it  would  be  difficult  to  cite  a festive  event  in 
which  tapestry  did  not  assist.  The  King  of  France, 
Francois  Premier,  and  the  Emperor  Charles  V rivaled 
with  each  other  in  the  possession  and  display  on  all 
occasions  of  these  magnificent  fabrics  of  silk  and  gold. 
In  Italy,  Pope  Leo  X ordered  tapestries  for  the  wall 
decoration  of  the  Sixtine  Chapel,  and  the  walls  of  the 
Consistory  ; — the  Doges  of  Venice  for  the  Ducal 
Palace,  the  Medicis  of  Florence,  the  d’Estes,  the  Gon- 
zagues  seek  these  precious  fabrics  with  equal  passion. 
They  are  counted  by  the  hundreds  placed  in  their 


18 


palaces  or  villas,  and  even  then  they  hardly  excel 
the  municipalities,  the  Chapters  of  Churches  in  this 
infatuated  pursuit. 

If  we  consider  the  choice  of  subjects,  we  find  that 
here  also  tapestry  is  intimately  connected  with  the 
national  life,  with  the  religious,  political,  and  intellect- 
ual preoccupations  of  the  epoch.  Without  renouncing 
to  draw  from  Scripture,  they  go  back  with  enthusiasm 
to  Mythology  and  ancient  history.  The  souvenirs  of 
the  middle  ages,  with  their  romances  of  Knighthood 
and  Tournaments,  are  laid  aside  and  a new  spirit  seeks 
light.  Allegory  continues  to  flourish,  but  taking  more 
and  more  antique  form  ; and  lastly  but  chiefly  Princes 
and  Municipalities  perpetuate  the  souvenir  of  their 
victories. 

The  struggles  of  this  great  and  lively  epoch  are  no- 
where revived  with  so  much  brilliancy.  During  the 
best  period  of  the  Renaissance,  the  most  illustrious 
painters  had  to  compose  the  cartoons  destined  to  be 
translated  into  tapestries.  In  Italy,  Raphael,  Giulio 
Romano,  Andrea  del  Sarto,  Bronzino,  Tizian,  Paul 
Veronese,  and  many  others  acquitted  themselves  of 
this  mission.  In  Flandres,  Bernard  Van  Orley,  Michel 
Coxie,  and  Pierre  de  Campana,  and  others,  endowed 
the  textile  art  with  models  not  less  interesting. 


19 


The  intervention  of  Raphael  could  not  fail  to  influ- 
ence greatly  the  fate  of  tapestry.  Was  it  beneficial  or 
fatal  ? This  is  a question  which  in  recent  times  has 
often  been  asked.  It  cannot  be  denied  that  in  spite  of 
the  importance  which  Raphael  accorded  the  decorative 
element  in  the  borders  of  his  compositions,  he  has 
treated  the  compositions  themselves  like  regular  fres- 
coes, and  not  like  models  of  hangings.  His  favorite 
pupil,  Giulio  Romano,  exaggerated  this  tendency  still 
more,  until  it  finally  prevailed  in  Italy  as  well  as  in 
Flandres.  The  consequences  of  this  revolution  were, 
that  the  tapestry,  like  architecture,  assumes  a character 
of  greater  elegance,  the  style  is  broadened  and  purified, 
the  compositions  become  freer,  gayer,  ampler,  they 
lose  their  rigid  forms,  the  nude  appears  with  all  its 
might,  and  it  seems  as  though  the  air  and  light  have 
penetrated  the  tapestries  as  they  did  the  house.  On 
the  other  hand,  some  of  our  ablest  artists  and  connois- 
seurs have  criticised  these  modifications,  maintaining 
that  it  is  always  objectionable  to  leave  a large  vacant 
sky  effect  in  the  upper  part  of  a composition  for  a 
tapestry,  for  the  reason  that  it  loses  the  idea  of  a hang- 
ing intended  to  cover  a wall,  and  rather  resembles  an 
open  window  through  which  enter  and  pass  the  various 
figures. 


20 


But  what  marvels  do  we  not  owe  to  the  initiative  of 
Raphael ! Only  to  mention  the  design  of  the  border, 
which  received  a new  birth,  an  undreamed  of  richness 
and  splendor,  crowned  with  cupids,  flowers,  arabesques 
and  figures.  From  the  time  when  Pope  Leo  X com- 
missioned Raphael  to  paint  the  famous  cartoon  repre- 
senting “ The  Acts  of  the  Apostles,”  and  sent  them  to 
Brussels  to  be  executed,  he  set  an  example  which  found 
only  too  many  followers.  Henceforth  Italy  had  the 
monopoly  of  the  invention  as  Brussels  held  that  of  the 
manufacture.  It  was  in  the  year  1515  when  this  refined 
and  magnificent  patron  of  the  Arts,  Leo  X,  ordered 
this  famous  series  in  Brussels,  which  alone  would  have 
sufficed  to  immortalize  the  ateliers  of  the  ancient  Flem- 
ish capital.  The  artist  to  whom  the  Pope  entrusted 
this  memorable  work  was  Pierre  Van  Aelst,  who  for 
more  than  thirty  years  was  incontestably  the  prince  of 
the  Flemish  tapestry  weavers.  The  cartoons  were  ten 
in  number,  and  measured  16  feet  in  height  and  140  feet 
in  total  length.  They  were  commenced  in  1515  and 
completed  by  the  end  of  1519,  in  four  years,  an  incredi- 
bly short  time,  and  which  proves  how  much  better 
the  Flemish  ateliers  of  the  XVIth  century  were  than 
those  of  the  Gobelins  of  the  XVIIth  century,  not  to 
speak  of  the  Gobelins  of  to-day. 


21 


It  must  also  be  stated,  however,  that  the  Pope  never 
flinched  before  any  sacrifice.  The  execution  of  these 
tapestries  cost  him  15,000  ducats,  or  in  our  money 
$150,000;  and  he  paid  Raphael  1,000  ducats,  or  $10,000, 
for  the  cartoons ; and  it  must  not  be  forgotton  that  the 
purchasing  power  of  money  had  in  those  days  probably 
four  or  five  times  the  value  of  to-day.  The  gold  ducat 
or  florin  of  the  XVIth  century  weighed  about  3^ 
grammes;  it  represents  about  $10  of  our  money. 

When  the  “ Acts  of  the  Apostles  ” were  for  the  first 
time  shown  in  the  Sixtine  Chapel,  in  Rome,  on  Christ- 
mas Day,  1519,  they  excited  an  indescribable  admiration. 
“The  whole  chapel,”  says  a contemporary,  “stood 
astounded  before  these  hangings ; there  was  one  unani- 
mous verdict— that  nothing  more  beautiful  existed  in 
all  the  world.”  Thirty  years  later,  the  great  art  histo- 
rian, Vasari,  this  connoisseur  with  an  infallible  and 
refined  taste,  showers  no  less  sincere  and  enthusiastic 
praises  on  the  work  of  Pierre  Van  Aelst.  “One  is 
astounded,”  he  says,  “in  regarding  this  suite;  the  exe- 
cution is  a marvel.  One  can  hardly  conceive  how  it  is 
possible  with  simple  threads  to  produce  a finesse  simi- 
lar to  the  hair  and  beard,  and  give  the  softness  of  the 
living  flesh.  It  is  a work  more  divine  than  human. 
The  water,  the  animals,  the  architecture,  are  rendered 


22 


with  such  perfection  that  they  seem  to  be  painted  with 
the  help  of  a brush,  and  not  woven  by  hand.” 

The  original  cartoons,  with  the  exception  of  three, 
remained  in  Brussels  until  1630,  when,  thanks  to  the 
suggestion  of  Rubens,  Charles  I.  of  England  acquired 
them  by  purchase,  and  they  are  preserved  to-day  at  the 
Kensington  Museum.  They  served  Van  Aelst  and  his 
successors  for  the  execution  of  many  replicas  of  this 
famous  suite,  the  best  of  which  are  those  owned  to-day 
by  the  Museums  of  Berlin  and  Dresden,  the  series  in 
the  royal  palace  in  Madrid,  the  palace  in  Vienna,  and 
the  Cathedral  of  Lorette,  The  original  set  still  exists 
to-day,  after  some  strange  adventures,*  in  the  Vatican 
in  Rome. 

I must  abstain  from  a further  mention  or  description 
of  the  long  line  of  incomparable  tapestries,  and  the 
many  perfect  chef  d’oeuvres  of  the  textile  art,  which 
saw  the  light  of  day  in  the  celebrated  Flemish  metrop- 
olis during  the  first  half  of  the  XVIth  Century.  She 

* At  the  death  of  the  Pope  in  1521,  they  were  pawned  for  the  sum  of  $50,000  ; in 
1527,  during  the  horrible  pillage  of  Rome,  several  were  stolen  ; one  was  even  cut 
into  pieces.  These  wrecks,  two  of  which  had  drifted  to  Constantinople,  were, 
thanks  to  the  efforts  of  Marshal  Montmorency,  again  secured  for  the  Vatican. 
After  the  entry  of  the  French  troops  in  Rome,  at  the  end  of  the  last  century,  the 
whole  series  were  purchased  by  a syndicate  of  brokers,  who  exhibited  them  at  the 
Louvre  in  1798. 

In  the  first  years  of  this  century  Pope  Pius  VII.  succeeded  in  reacquiring  them 
for  the  Vatican,  where  they  were  put  in  place  again  in  1808  ; they  have  not  left 
there  since.  , 


23 


completely  eclipsed  all  rivals,  and,  before  her  extraor- 
dinary rise,  all  other  centers  in  France  and  Flanders 
seemed  to  be  almost  crushed  out  of  existence  by  her 
competition. 

The  second  half  of  the  XVIth  Century,  however,  wit- 
nessed a visible  decline  of  Brussels’  prosperity.  The 
internal  troubles,  the  bloody  persecutions  were  accom- 
panied by  a degeneracy  of  taste.  The  intimacy  and 
sincerity  which  lent  so  much  charm  to  the  Flemish 
tapestry  of  the  Middle  Ages  and  the  early  Renais- 
sance gradually  disappeared.  In  the  place  of  those  ex- 
cellent garlands  of  flowers  and  fruit  appear  borders 
with  pumpkins,  carrots,  and  onions,  interspersed  with 
allegorical  figures,  as  banal  as  they  were  incorrect; 
the  fabric  loses  its  fineness,  the  coloring  its  brightness 
and  harmony.  Henceforth  Brussels’  tapestry  industry 
still  vegetated  for  a long  time,  but  it  is  fast  losing  its 
superiority. 

In  the  meantime  Italy  has  commenced  a brilliant 
start  at  our  industry.  Not  satisfied  with  furnishing  the 
cartoons  for  the  rest  of  Europe,  she  sent  for  many 
capable  artists  and  artisans  to  help  her  establish  her 
own  ateliers.  At  Ferrare,  at  Milan,  Mantua,  Venice, 
and  Genoa,  ateliers  sprang  into  existence,  but  chiefly 
at  Florence,  under  Cosimus  the  1st,  a factory  was 


24 


started,  which  soon  became  famous;  it  was  known 
under  the  name  of  the  “Arazzeria  Medicea,”and  lasted 
as  long  as  the  Medici  were  in  power,  that  is,  until  the 
beginning  of  the  XVIII.  century. 

Two  Flemish  masters  of  renown,  Jean  Rost  and 
Nicholas  Karcher,  were  called  to  take  charge  of  the 
works  in  1549,  on  a contract  of  three  years,  which  was 
renewed  in  1552,  and  from  this  moment  the  works  went 
on  uninterruptedly  for  more  than  150  years.  Among 
the  artists  whom  Cosimus  attached  to  his  ducal  factory 
were  Bronzino  and  Salviati,  in  the  front  rank.  The 
former  composed  the  famous  suite  representing  the 
u Story  of  Joseph,”  which  are  still  to  be  seen  to-day  at 
the  Palazzo  Vecchio,  in  Florence,  and  have  lost  noth- 
ing of  their  original  splendor.  Salviati  composed  the 
“ History  of  Alexander  the  Great,”  and  the  “ Story  of 
Lucrezia,”  the  beauty  of  which  is  celebrated  by  Vasari ; 
a third  famous  master,  Francesco  d’ Albertino,  furnished 
the  cartoons  for  the  “ Twelve  Months  ” and  the  “ Gro- 
tesques,” all  of  which  hung  until  recently  in  the 
corridors  of  the  Uffizzi  Gallery,  and  are  now  housed 
in  the  Museum  of  Archseology.  The  upper  stories  of 
this  Museum  are  exclusively  devoted  to  the  exhibition 
of  tapestries,  mostly  made  in  the  Arrazzeria  Medicea. 
During  my  visit  there  last  summer  I examined  many 


25 


hundreds  placed  on  view,  and  I am  told  that  several 
thousand  pieces  more  are  owned  by  the  city  and  stored 
in  its  Garde  de  Meubles. 

THE  XVIIth  CENTURY 
saw  the  foundation  of  the  Gobelin  factory  in  Paris,  and 
from  that  time  France  steps  into  the  front  rank  in  the 
art  of  tapestry  making,  which  it  has  held  ever  since. 

The  economic  importance  of  such  an  art  industry 
did  not  escape  the  clear  sightedness  of  Henry  IV. 
This  great  king  neglected  nothing  to  develop  and  pro- 
tect the  national  ateliers  against  foreign  competetion. 
In  1607  he  sent  for  two  able  artists  from  Flandres, 
Frangois  de  la  Planche  and  Marc  Coomans.  He  in- 
stalled them  in  the  Faubourg  St.  Marceau,  gave  them 
a charter  of  the  monopoly  for  twenty-five  years,  letters 
of  nobility,  considerable  subsidies,  and  extended  privi- 
leges. The  King  gave  them  and  their  workmen  free 
lodging,  and  exempted  them  from  all  taxes  for  twenty- 
five  years;  he  gave  them  as  apprentices  twenty-five 
boys  the  first  year,  twenty  the  second,  and  as  many  the 
third,  all  French  children,  for  whom  he  paid  the  board 
and  expenses.  The  import  of  all  foreign  tapestries  was 
forbidden,  and  the  native  product  was  to  be  sold  at  the 
selling  prices  of  those  in  The  Netherlands.  A large 


26 


staff  of  the  foremost  painters  was  charged  with  the 
execution  of  the  cartoons  of  the  various  works,  among 
them  Lerambert,  Laurent,  Dubreuil,  Guyot,  etc. 

Such  was  the  royal  beginning  of  this  royal  art  industry 
in  France.  It  did  not  last  very  long.  Three  years  later, 
in  1610,  Henry  IV.  was  murdered  by  Ravaillac,  and 
the  death  of  the  King  was  a fatal  blow  to  the  enter- 
prise of  De  la  Planche  and  Coomans.  After  many 
vicissitudes  these  two  masters  installed  themselves,  in 
1630,  at  the  Gobelins,  where  they  definitely  fixed  them- 
selves. From  this  period  date  many  important  pro- 
ductions, such  as  the  “ Caledonian  Boar  Hunt,”  the 
“Sacrifice  of  Abraham,”  etc. 

The  year  1662  marks  a memorable  date  in  the  annals 
of  tapestry.  It  witnessed  the  establishment  of  the 
Royal  Manufactory  of  the  Furniture  of  the  Crown,  or 
to  call  it  by  its  modern  name,  “ The  Manufacture  of  the 
Gobelins.”  Under  the  direction  of  his  able  minister, 
Colbert,  one  of  the  first  acts  of  Louis  XIV.  was  to 
choose  a talented  director  and  painter  to  make  the 
designs,  and  his  choice  fell  fortunately  on  LeBrun.  Le 
Brun  shares  with  the  great  Rubens  the  glory  of  hav- 
ing forever  impressed  their  trace  on  our  art,  and  raised 
it  again  to  the  height  of  Raphael  and  Van  Aelst  in  the 
preceding  century.  If  we  leave  aside  the  painters 


27 


who  more  or  less  accidentally  have  furnished  models 
for  tapestry  at  this  period,  such  as  Jordaens  and  Teniers 
at  Flandres,  or  Lerambert,  Guyot,  Poussin,  Philip  de 
Champagne,  Vander  Meulen,  Coy  pel,  in  France — one 
name  dominates  the  whole  of  the  XVIIth  century, 
together  with  that  of  Rubens,  and  that  is  Charles  Le 
Brun.  He  has  done  more  for  the  decorative  arts  than 
all  the  rest  put  together.  The  sentiment  of  decoration 
is  so  vivid  in  him  that  his  paintings  seem  transfigured  in 
passing  from  the  canvas  on  the  loom ; their  translation 
in  a different  art  gives  them  more  splendor,  a richer 
and  more  masculine  harmony.  It  is  the  same  with 
those  large  panels  of  ceremony,  that  incomparable 
series  called  “The  History  of  Louis  XIV.”  When 
these  dazzling  hangings  of  silk  and  gold  are  moved, 
one  feels  a religious  tremor — one  almost  expects  to  see 
Alexander,  le  roi-dieu,  and  Louis  XIV.,  le  roi-soleil, 
descend  from  their  triumphal  car,  or  the  steps  of  the 
throne,  to  mingle  with  us. 

At  the  head  of  the  looms  were  placed  such  masters 
as  Jans  from  Andenarde,  with  a number  of  Flemish 
workmen,  and  Jean  Lefevrefrom  Brussels,  who  had  been 
some  years  in  Florence  under  the  Medici.  The  Gobe- 
lins were,  at  the  time  when  Louis  XIV.  and  Colbert  de- 
cided to  install  their  new  factory,  enjoying  a great 


28 


industrial  reputation.  The  family  which  gave  them 
their  name  came  here  from  Rheims  in  the  XVth  cen- 
tury as  dyers,  and  owing  to  their  expert  knowledge  and 
excellent  qualities  of  the  water  of  the  little  river  Bievre, 
became  rapidly  famous  and  prosperous.  It  seems  that 
the  manufacture  of  tapestry  was  added  to  their  dye 
works  in  1630,  for  which  they  associated  themselves 
with  Coomans  and  De  la  Planche,  as  stated  before. 
The  new  manufactory  of  the  Government  soon  dis- 
played an  extraordinary  activity.  250  workmen  were 
employed,  and  to  the  masters,  Jans  and  Lefevre,  were 
added  three  more,  Laurent,  Delacroix  and  Mosin.  Le 
Brun  himself  had  a veritable  army  of  painters  under 
his  orders,  the  number  is  stated  to  be  forty-nine  for  the 
royal  factories  alone,  from  1663  to  1690,  when  LeBrun 
died.  In  these  twenty-eight  years  the  factory  com- 
pleted nineteen  series  of  haute-lisse  containing  about 
1,400  square  meters,  and  costing  about  2,500,000  francs, 
or  about  2,000  per  square  meter,  not  including  the  cost 
of  the  cartoons.  It  also  completed  in  this  period  thirty, 
four  series  of  basse-lisse  measuring  1,500  square  me- 
terrs  and  costing  about  1,500,000,  or  1,000  francs  per 
square  meter. 

The  principal  series  are  44  The  Acts  of  the  Apostles  ” 
after  Raphael,  4 4 The  Story  of  Moses”  after  Poussin 


29 


and  Le  Bran,  “ The  History  of  the  King  ” by  Le  Brim 
and  Vander  Meulen,  ‘ 4 History  of  Alexander,”  “The 
Elements,”  “The  Seasons,”  by  Le  Bran,  “ Les  Cha- 
teaux de  France,”  by  Le  Brun  and  Vander  Meulen, 
etc.,  etc.,  too  many  to  mention  here.  All  of  these  are 
at  this  day  in  the  possession  of  the  French  Govern- 
ment and  are  jewels  of  its  many  treasures. 

Toward  the  latter  part  of  the  XVIIth  century,  in 
1664,  was  also  established  the  manufactory  at  Beauvais 
by  a Parisian  tapestry  merchant,  named  Louis  Hinart, 
who  managed  to  obtain  privileges  and  subsidies  from 
the  King,  but  did  not  succeed  as  well  as  he  had  prom- 
ised. It  only  began  to  flourish  when  20  years  later, 
1684,  the  able  Philippe  Behacle  from  Tournai  became 
its  manager,  and  when,  in  1694,  the  Gobelins  were 
closed  by  the  King,  owing  to  lack  of  funds  on  account 
of  his  wars,  Beauvais  was  sufficiently  flourishing  to 
permit  him  to  employ  a large  number  of  the  men  dis- 
charged at  the  Gobelins.  He  executed  a large  order 
for  the  King  of  Sweden,  also  the  “ The  Acts  of  the 
Apostles”  for  the  Cathedral  of  Beauvais,  the  “Con- 
quests of  Louis  XIV.,”  etc. 

It  would  lead  me  too  far  to  speak  in  detail  of  the 
history  of  tapestry  outside  of  France  during  this 
XVIIth  century.  Brussels  and  the  rest  of  Flandres 


30 


continued  to  produce  enormously,  but  the  star  of  the 
Renaissance,  and  with  it  the  former  high  quality,  fast 
disappeared,  although  David  Teniers,  with  his  rustic 
compositions,  assured  them  for  a while  a new  vogue. 
In  Italy,  only  the  Florentine  factory  continued  to  pro. 
duce,  and  here  as  in  Flandres,  the  “ basse-lisse  loom 
was  substituted  for  the  haute-lisse  ” loom,  as  a means 
of  more  rapid  and  therefore  cheaper  production. 

The  making  of  tapestry  even  spread  to  Germany, 
where  the  Elector  of  Bavaria  established  a factory  at 
Munich,  and  to  England  where  Jacob  I.  employed 
50  Flemish  workmen  at  Mortlake,  and  both  countries 
produced  works  of  a high  degree  of  perfection,  artis- 
tically as  well  as  mechanically.  Yes,  even  Denmark 
and  Russia  established  tapestry  works,  so  great  was 
the  universal  favor  in  which  these  wonderful  fabrics 
were  held  everywhere. 

IN  THE  XVIIIth  CENTURY 
a new  spirit  invades  the  character  of  tapestry.  With 
perfect  ease  it  adapts  itself  to  the  tastes  and  require- 
ments of  this  new  society,  which  is  as  lively,  as 
spirituelle,  and  as  frivolous  as  that  of  Louis  XIV. ’s 
time  was  grave  and  solemn. 

The  boudoir  supplants  the  vast  and  sumptuous 


31 


salon  ; the  small  art  dethrones  the  great  ; historical 
compositions  and  monumental  hangings  are  done  for. 
While  Louis  XIV.  perpetuated  the  grand  acts  of  his 
reign  in  suites  of  tapestries  on  the  grandest  scale, 
Louis  XV.  thought  himself  quits  with  posterity  by 
offering  it  the  souvenir  of  his  hunting  exploits.  The 
pomp  of  “ The  Triumph  of  Alexander  ” is  followed  by 
the  comic  adventures  of  Don  Quichote ; the  execution 
of  a garniture  of  furniture-covering  is  prized  far  be- 
yond a suite  of  figure  panels. 

Oudry  and  Boucher  become  the  successors  of  Le 
Brun,  which  explains  all,  and  yet  in  its  exhaustible 
adaptability,  tapestry  accepts  all  these  changes,  sub- 
mits to  all  caprices  of  fashion.  The  contemporary 
artists  please  themselves  to  lead  this  over-refined  world 
of  the  Court  and  the  City  to  ideal  regions.  Boucher 
paints  the  Olympian  Gods — Le  Prince,  the  Bohemians 
—Van  Loo,  the  Sultanas — Desportes,  Scenes  from 
India — Fontenay,  Chinese  scenes  and  Casanova  Rus- 
sian festivals.  This  remarkable  tendency  of  looking  at 
things  through  a prism  appears  most  forcible  in  the  so- 
called  “ Pastorale  ” compositions,  so  deliciously  false, 
where  the  shepherds  seem  to  have  just  stepped  out  of 
the  Versailles  Palace  for  the  first  time,  and  raiments  of 
the  shepherdesses  have  nothing  to  envy  of  a ducess.  In 


32 


PANEL,  GENRE  BOUCHER.  PASTORALE 
MADE  FOR  P.  A.  B.  WIDENER,  ESQ. 


PANEL,  GENRE  BOUCHER.  PASTORALE 
MADE  FOR  P.  A.  B.  WIDENER.  ESQ. 


the  same  way  the  seats  and  backs  of  sofas  and  chairs 
were  covered  with  ‘ 4 pastorales”  or  scenes  from  Lafon- 
taine’s  fables,  or  even  mythological  compositions, 
landscapes,  etc.,  so  that  one  had  to  sit  down  on  a sea- 
port or  sheep  and  shepherdesses,  etc.  This  new  fashion 
swept  everything  before  it,  and  made  the  fortune  of 
the  Beauvais  factory.  And  it  is  necessary  to  add  that 
these  furniture  coverings,  taken  by  themselves,  are 
exquisitely  charming  and  well  able  to  disarm  the  sev- 
erest criticism  ? 

The  cartoons  with  which  Boucher  enriched  the  Gobe- 
lins met  with  instant  success;  they  were  “Neptune 
and  Amymone/’  “Venus  in  the  Smithy  of  Vulcan,” 
“ Psyche  and  Amor,”  “ The  Fortune  Teller,”  “ Amin- 
the  and  Sylvie,”  etc.,  and  numberless  cupids,  playing 
children,  etc. , beautifully  framed  in  flowers  and  other 
ornaments. 

But  to  this  strange  aberration  of  taste  was  soon 
added  another  more  serious  departure  from  the  tradi- 
tion of  the  former  age.  Commenced  by  Oudry  and 
followed  by  Boucher,  these  great  artists  in  their  eager 
desire  to  rival  with  painting,  to  produce  the  threads  of 
wool  and  silk  compositions  giving  the  very  illusion  of  oil 
painting,  did  not  hesitate  to  employ  the  most  delicate 
and  fugitive  colors,  and  aided  by  the  Government  chem- 


33 


ists,  with  more  zeal  than  prudence,  arrived  at  an 
assortment  of  over  a thousand  colors,  each  subdivided 
into  twelve  shades  from  light  to  dark.  What  was  the 
result  ? In  a short  time  the  harmonious  color  scheme 
vanished;  while  certain  parts  preserved  their  original 
splendor,  others  gradually  faded.  The  most  beautiful 
pieces  were  rapidly  spoiled  by  serious  changes  in  the 
coloring.  Nobody  thought  of  to-morrow  in  this  time. 
The  contemporaries  felt  enchanted  with  the  immediate 
results.  Was  anything  else  needed  ? And  it  must  be 
admitted,  that  the  charm  exercised  by  Boucher  and 
his  school,  Audran,  Cozette,  and  others,  is  felt  even  to 
the  present  day  ; their  graceful  compositions  of  my- 
thological and  allegorical  subjects,  their  touching  and 
sprightly  pastorales  never  failed  to  excite  admiration, 
but  when  their  new  theories  were  continued  by  their 
less  talented  successors,  it  became  evident  on  what 
fatal  downward  road  tapestry-making  had  embarked. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  the  end  of  the  XVIIIth 
century,  and  with  that,  at  the  end  of  the  last  impor- 
tant era  of  our  art  of  tapestry-making.  While  the 
Gobelin  factory  has  been  going  on,  even  during  the 
time  of  the  revolution,  ever  since,  it  had  for  a long 
time  only  a bare  existence.  Brussels  and  all  other 
centers  of  tapestry-making  had  not  a single  loom  left 


34 


in  operation.  This  ruin  was  not  due  to  political  troubles 
at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  only,  nor  even 
chiefly;  one  of  the  causes  was  undoubtedly  the  fickle- 
ness of  fashion,  and  another  the  dispersion  of  large 
fortunes,  and  in  consequence  the  search  for  cheap 
substitutes.  Paper  hangings  and  woven  stuffs  took 
the  place  occupied  for  many  centuries  by  tapestries, 
and  the  disdain  for  these  noble  fabrics  went  so  far  as 
to  relegate  them  to  the  garrets,  abandoned  to  the  dust 
and  vermin. 

Only  in  our  day,  thanks  to  the  efforts  of  some  men 
of  taste,  they  are  again  beginning  to  find  their  right- 
ful place  in  the  public  collections,  in  the  homes  of  the 
cultivated  rich,  in  the  artist’s  studios.  This  movement 
cannot  be  checked  any  more,  and  it  is  steadily  on  the 
increa.se,  and  it  may  safely  be  predicted  that  the  value 
of  these  fabrics  will  rise  in  still  greater  proportion. 

In  recent  years  tapestry-making  is  having  a sort 
of  revival  from  its  long  slumber.  Outside  of  the  two 
factories  of  the  French  Government,  the  Gobelins  and 
the  Beauvais,  which  employ,  all  told,  about  eighty 
persons,  there  are  two  private  establishments  of  some 
importance,  both  at  Aubusson,  employing  together 
about  one  hundred  persons.  A few  small  ateliers  also 
exist  in  Neuilly,  near  Paris — this  is  all  that  exists  in 


35 


France  to-day.  Some  years  ago  an  atelier  was  started 
or  rather  reopened  in  Rome,  Italy,  at  the  San  Michele 
Hospito,  tinder  the  direction  of  Giuseppi  Printo.  Also 
in  Berlin,  Germany,  an  atelier  was  started  by  a Mr. 
Ziesch  under  the  patronage  of  the  present  Emperor. 
This  last  one  is  entirely  operated  by  girls,  about 
twenty  in  number.  I saw  there  some  fine  old  Boucher 
tapestries  belonging  to  the  Emperor  being  repaired, 
but  of  their  own  productions  I saw  only  chair  covers 
and  some  screen  panels. 

Then,  there  was  the  attempt  in  1876  to  establish 
tapestry  weaving  in  England,  and  works  were  started 
in  Windsor  under  the  patronage  of  the  Queen,  under 
the  name  of  “ The  Royal  Windsor  Tapestry  Works.” 
Never  was  a new  establishment  better  endowed  with 
funds  in  the  beginning,  and  large  yearly  contributions 
for  a number  of  years,  and  aided  from  the  outset  with 
most  liberal  commissions  by  the  Royal  family  and 
other  princely  houses  in  and  out  of  England. 

I had  occasion  in  1882  to  visit  the  works  for  the  pur- 
pose of  inspecting  the  progress  of  the  tapestries  then 
being  made  for  the  hall  and  staircase  wall  frieze  in  the 
residence  of  Mr.  C.  Vanderbilt.  This  was  intended  for 
his  new  residence  at  the  corner  of  Fifth  Avenue  and  5 7th 
Street,  which  was  then  being  erected,  the  first  half  of 


36 


LAST  ADDITION  TO  ATELIERS,  ERECTED  1895. 


his  present  residence.  The  works  were  located  in  an 
old  roomy  country  house,  surrounded  with  large 
garden,  shaded  by  vines  and  large  trees,  and  the  looms 
were  distributed  over  the  various  rooms.  In  appear- 
ance everything  seemed  extremely  prosperous  about 
the  works,  but  I learned  afterwards  that  the  manage- 
ment indulged  in  the  most  reckless  expenditures. 

The  works  were  managed  by  two  different  councils — 
i$»e  the  Council  of  Patrons^under  the  presidency  of 
Prince  Leopold  aijtd  such  gentlemen  as  Sir  Richard 
Wallace,  the  Duke  of  Westminster,  Henry  Brassey  and 
alew*ethers,  and  the  Council  of  Artlsts^^o^^umk'gr^  - 
under  the  presidency  of  Mr.  Henry.  The  duties  of  the 
Council  of  Patrons  seem  to  have  been  chiefly  to  con- 
stantly provide  funds  for  carrying  on  the  works,  and 
eventually  to  take  a large  part  of  the  product  at  enor- 
mous prices.  The  Council  of  Artists  held  monthly 
meetings,  discussing  the  weal  and  woe  of  the  new  in- 
dustry, drawing  large  salaries  (I  believe  one  thousand 
pounds  each  per  year)  and  awarding  to  themselves  the 
painting  of  the  cartoons  at  large  compensations. 

Of  course  the  result  was  that  the  productions  became 
so  high  that  the  prices  charged  the  noble  clients  and 
patrons  was  out  of  all  proportion  to  their  value,  and 
while  they  allowed  themselves  to  be  victimized  for  a 


37 


few  years  in  the  interest  of  national  glory  and  in  the 
belief  that  after  a fair  start  things  would  mend  in  the 
way  of  economy,  they  at  last  became  aware  of  the 
utter  inability  of  the  management  to  make  the  work 
self-supporting,  and  naturally  ceased  their  contribu- 
tions from  the  Queen  down,  and  the  collapse  was  the 
immediate  result.  This  occurred  in  1887,  after  an  ex- 
istence of  a little  over  ten  years. 

You  may  remember  at  the  World’s  Fair  there  were  a 
large  number  of  so  called  “ Verdure  ” panels  hung  on 
the  wall  of  the  large  center  aisle  in  the  Art  Building, 
and  were  exhibited  as  belonging  to  the  Queen,  and 
made  at  the  Windsor  Works.  If  you  recall  them  at  all, 
you  will  agree  with  me  that  they  were  neither  distin- 
guished in  coloring,  which  was  without  charm  and  very 
dingy,  nor  by  their  design,  which  seemed  to  be  a sort 
of  an  English  adaptation  of  old  Aubusson  verdures. 

Upon  my  inquiry  whether  they  were  for  sale,  I was 
told  that  they  might  be  had,  and  their  price  would  be, 
if  I remember  rightly,  $400  a panel.  I should  be 
pleased  to  receive  orders  for  similar  work  at  $200  a 
panel,  and  would  guarantee  to  execute  them  better  in 
design,  color,  and  quality  at  that  price, 
ct  The  history  of  our  own  enterprise  is  soon  told. 
When  the  thought  first  came  to  me  of  attempting  the 


38 


introduction  of  tapestry-making  in  this  country,  I 
was  fully  aware  of  the  magnitude  of  the  task 
and  of  the  serious  obstacles  to  be  overcome.  It 
was,  of  course,  necessary  to  bring  the  artizans  over 
from  France,  and  to  build  the  looms,  as  a first  step. 
This  seems  simple  enough,  and  yet,  had  we  not  had  the 
good  fortune  of  finding  Mr.  Foussadier,  the  former  mas- 
ter workman  of  the  Royal  Windsor  Tapestry  Works  in 
England  it  might  have  been  very  difficult  to  get  other 
first-class  men  to  come  after  him.  They  are  all  un- 
willing to  leave  France,  and  could  only  be  induced  by  the 
promise  of  higher  wages,  the  guarantee  of  steady  work 
for  at  least  a year  and  the  free  passage  over  and  back. 
^ Mr.  Foussadier  with  his  family  came  over  the  early 
part  of  January,  1893,  bringing  with  him  a small  loom 
which  was  at  once  set  up  in  one  of  our  rooms  at  No.  321 
Fifth  Avenue,  and  work  began.  I can  here  show  you 
the  first  piece  of  tapestry  produced.  It  is  a small 
chair  seat,  and  took  about  two  weeks  to  make.  It  is  a 
simple  and  modest  production,  but  is  not  for  sale, 
and  is  intended  to  remain  an  heirloom  in  my  family  as 
the  first  piece  of  tapestry  produced  in  America.  The 
second  piece,  exactly  the  same,  was  soon  prodi^ced,  and 
this  found  its  way,  through  the  kindly  interest  of  its 
wide  awake  Director,  to  the  Field  Museum  in  Chicago. 


39 


a 

Four  more  weavers  soon  followed  my  new  superin- 
tendent, one  after  another,  in  the  first  few  months.  In 
the  meantime  we  had  built  more  looms,  and  it  had 
become  necessary  to  find  a suitable  home  for  their 
ateliers,  and  my  choice  fell  on  a house  in  Williams- 
bridge,  which  was  in  former  years  a French  restaurant 
and  hotel,  where  I spent  many  a happy  Sunday  in 
the  springtide  of  my  Bohemian  days,  30  years  ago. 
There  is  quite  a French  settlement  there,  and  I 
thought  my  men  would  feel  more  at  home  there  than 
elsewhere.  As  a matter  of  fact,  they  have  found  here 
a little  paradise. 

But  we  soon  made  another  happy  discovery.  Mr. 
Foussadier,  who  is  as  expert  a dyer  as  he  is  a weaver, 
soon  discovered  at  his  first  experiments,  that  the  water 
of  the  Bronx  River,  which  flows  at  our  door,  possesses 
the  most  excellent  qualities  for  dying  purposes.  This 
is  owing  to  the  dissolved  vegetable  substances  which  it 
contains.  I may  here  mention  that  this  same  quality 
was  attributed  to  the  water  of  the  little  river  La  Bi 6vfa/ 
in  the  Fau^  St.  Marcel^©^  Paris,  where  the  Gobelins 
located  their  dye  works  in  the  XVjfcii  l^entury,  and 
which  became  so  famous  on  account  of  their  superiority 
over  all  others.  Th^-present^GabelOT  works,  however, 
have  for  a long  time  ceased  to  employ  the  Bi6ver 


40 

' V'f" 


ONE  OF  THE  TAPESTRY  PANELS  MADE 


TRUSTEE  ROOM,  N.  Y.  LIFE  INS.  CO. 


water, which  had  gradually  become  too  impure,  and 
have  bought  to  supply  by  the  progress  of  chemistry 
Jjy  1 Wciiei-pdBCMeed. 

^The  next  step  was  to  secure  apprentices,  with  the 
view  of  making  the  industry  gradually  a native  one 
and  independent  of  foreign  workmen.  This,  however, 
proved  more  difficult.  It  is  one  of  the  evils  of  this 
country  that  boys,  after  leaving  school,  are  not  per- 
mitted or  bound  to  serve  a regular  apprenticeship  for 
three  or  four  years,  as  in  Europe,  to  properly  learn  a 
trade.  They  are  required  by  their  parents  to  earn  at 
once  $3  or  $4  a week  which  drives  them  into  the  stores 
and  messenger  offices,  etc.  It  is  evident  that  for  the 
first  year  or  two  little,  if  anything,  is  of  value  to  me 
that  can  be  done  by  these  boys.  On  the  contrary,  they 
require  constant  tuition  and  use  up  material  which 
constitutes  an  actual  loss  to  me.  However,  I deter- 
mined to  make  the  sacrifice  in  order  to  make  a begin- 
ning, and  we  took  on  two  boys  to  whom  we  promised 
$2  per  week  the  first  year,  $4  the  second  year,  $6  the 
third  and  $8  the  fourth.  These  were  followed  by  two 
more  boys  the  second  year,  and  again  by  two  more  the 
third.  All  six  are  now  doing  very  well,  and  the  first 
two  are  already  producing  quite  good  work. 
ecThus,  the  first  year  was  employed  to  get  well  started 


4* 


and  to  produce  a number  of  specimens,  such  as  cur- 
tains, portieres,  borders,  chair  coverings,  etc. , of  vari- 
ous qualities  to  show  what  we  could  do.  It  was  at  the 
end  of  the  first  year,  in  April,  1894,  that  I had  the 
honor  to  read  before  the  National  Society  of  Sculpt- 
ure, New  York,  a little  paper  on  our  tapestry  indus- 
try, and  to  submit  to  their  inspection  some  of  our  first 
productions.  They  were  not  very  pretentious,  to  be 
sure,  and  I said  then  that  my  ambition  and  aim  was 
much  higher,  that  I hoped  some  day  to  make  wall 
panels  of  as  high  an  artistic  merit  and  as  excellent 
in  workmanship  as  the  best  of  the  preceding  cen- 
turies. For  such  work,  however,  one  must  have 
orders,  and  in  these  depressed  times  they  were  not 
easily  obtained. 

Shortly  after  this  lecture  before  the  National  Sculp- 
ture Society,  I arranged  a little  exhibition  of  the  first 
year’s  products,  in  one  of  our  warerooms,  and  sent  out 
cards.  This  was  in  May,  1894.  In  response  to  the 
invitation,  among  many  others,  a gentleman  from  Phil- 
adelphia walked  in  on  a fine  May  morning,  saying  he 
wished  to  see  the  show.  He  liked  to  take  in  shows  that 
cost  nothing,  he  said.  After  some  conversation  and  a 
careful  inspection  of  our  new  productions,  he  said,  “ So 
you  would  like  to  make  more  ambitious  things,  wall 


42 


panels  with  figure  compositions,  eh  ? Do  you  think 
you  could  do  as  well  as  those  old  fellows  of  a hundred 
or  two  hundred  years  ago  ? ” To  which  I meekly  an- 
swered that  I would  try,  if  I had  the  opportunity. 
“Well,”  he  said,  “ I will  give  you  the  opportunity. 
Come  over  to  Philadelphia  next  week  and  I will  show 
you  the  room.”  The  result  was  that,  after  making  col- 
ored sketches,  which  took  about  a month  and  which 
were  approved,  I received  my  first  commission  for  a 
complete  set  of  wall  panels  for  a Parlor,  13  in  number, 
all  in  the  genre  of  Boucher,  with  what  is  called  “ Pas- 
torale Scenes.”  It  also  included  the  furniture  cover- 
ings and  two  pairs  of  portieres,  and  the  cost  amounted 
to  over  $20,000.  The  work  was  completed  by  the  first 
of  December,  1895,  in  about  15  months.  I had  the 
gratification  of  having  our  work  pass  muster  before 
the  critical  eyes  of  many  leading  artists  and  connois- 
seurs, and  it  has  given  the  greatest  pleasure  ever  since 
to  my  courageous  and  generous  client  in  Philadelphia.^! V[ 
P.  A.  B.  Widener.^  ^ 

c&The  number  of  workmen  were,  of  course,  imme- 
diately increased  by  fresh  importations  from  Europe. 

Six  of  them  came  in  a lot,  and  were  duly  scopped  by 
the  Immigration  Commissioners  as  contract  laborers. 
Then  began  my  troubles.  I was  ordered  to  appear 


43 


before  this  august  tribunal  of  wise  judges,  six  in  num- 
ber, mostly  Irish  and  German  politicians,  who  knew 
absolutely  nothing  about  tapestry,  and  could  not  be 
made  to  believe  that  in  this,  the  greatest  of  all  the 
countries  in  the  world,  there  were  no  such  beings  as 
tapestry  weavers  to  be  found,  and  that  it  was  absolu- 
tely a new  industry  I was  founding,  for  which  the  law 
allows  the  admission  of  imported  workmen.  I gave 
them  a most  exhaustive  lecture,  with  historical  and 
statistical  data,  whilst  my  poor  Frenchmen  sat  by  like 
prisoners,  not  knowing  what  it  was  all  about.  How- 
ever, to  make  a long  story  short,  after  a few  days  they 
were  liberated  by  an  order  from  the  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury,  and  thus  escaped  the  dreadful  fate  of  being 
returned  to  their  own  lovely  country,  ^a  Belle  France.  ’ 

I am  sure,  should  I find  myself  again  in  a similar 
predicament,  the  present  incomparable  Secretary  of  / 
the  Treasury,  your  eminent  townsman,  would  not  need 
much  coaxing  on  my  part  to  keep  the  door  wide  open 
for  more  such  artisans  to  come  in. 

We  had  hardly  begun  work  upon  this  first  impor- 
tant order  when,  through  the  influence  of  our  cele- 
brated architects,  McKim,  Meade  & White,  I received 
a second  large  and  important  commission  for  wall 
panels  in  the  Director’s  room  of  the  New  York  Life 


44 


ONE  OF  THE  FOUR  PANELS  EXECUTED  IN  SILK  TAPESTRY 
CF  FINE  POINT  FOR  THE  SALON  OF 
JACOB  H.  SCH1FF,  ESQ. 

6 ft.  8 in.  high  x 5 ft.  q in.  wide. 


Insurance  company.  They  were  made  in  a coarse 
point,  landscape  effects,  with  columns  and  draperies, 
etc.,  as  I will  show  you  with  the  camera.  More  men 
were  sent  for  and  they  came. 

Before  these  two  orders  were  finished  the  third  im- 
portant commission  was  received  for  a large  dining- 
room, also  in  Philadelphia.  They  were  wall  panels,  in 
fine  Gobelin  point,  representing  a stag  hunt  from  start 
to  finish.  It  contained  about  70  square  yards,  and  cost 
$18,000.  (The  generous  client  and  art  patron  in  this 
case  was  Mr.  W.  L.  Elkins. ) These  panels  were  finished 
by  the  1st  of  March,  1896. 

By  this  time  we  had  built  a large  addition  to  our 
building  in  W ill iamsbridge , and  increased  the  number 
of  our  looms  to  22,  and  the  number  of  our  artisans  to 
about  40  (which  is  more  than  the  Gobelin  Works  employ 
to-day).  We  had  the  satisfaction  of  having  our  pro- 
ductions esteemed  by  the  best  connoisseurs,  who  declare 
them  to  be  at  least  equal  to  any  produced  in  France  at 
th  e present  time.  Our  enterprise  had  become  a success. 

During  the  last  year  we  executed  the  splendid  wall 
panels  and  hangings  for  the  dining-room  of  Mrs.  Elliot 
F.  Shepard,  for  her  new  mansion  at  Scarborough-on-the- 
Hudson— a room  50  feet  long  by  36  feet  wide,  and  con- 
taining about  200  square  yards  of  tapestry,  including 


45 


the  windows  and  door  curtains  and  furniture,  at  a cost 
of  $60  a square  yard. 

This  order  was  also  suggested  to  Mrs.  Shepard  by 
her  architects,  McKim,  Meade  & White. 

Another  of  our  leading  architects,  Mr.  Hardenbergh 
(the  architect  of  the  Waldorf  and  new  Astor  Hotels) 
influenced  the  owners  of  the  new  Manhattan  Hotel, 
(one  of  the  newest  and  best  in  New  York)  to  order  from 
us  the  splendid  wall  panels  for  their  large  dining- 
room, all  of  which  were  executed  in  time,  and  give  the 
greatest  satisfaction. 

Another  important  work  of  last  year,  and  which  has 
only  lately  been  completed,  is  for  the  walls  of  a stair 
hall  in  New  York  City,  in  a house  built  by  Mr.  Hunt. 
The  subject  of  this  series  is  another  stag  hunt. 

I will  not  tire  you  by  a further  enumeration  of  what 
may  seem  to  you  almost  a business  inventory,  and  I 
will  only  mention,  before  closing  this  chapter,  that  I 
have  also  had  the  honor  and  the  pleasure  of  making 
some  tapestries  for  your  city  here.  They  were  in  a 
house  on  Erie  Street,  and,  although  they  were  only 
furniture  coverings,  I believe  that  by  their  design, 
color,  and  quality,  they  have  met  with  a hearty  wel- 
come by  their  gracious  owner. 

We  are  now  in  the  fifth  year  of  our  new  industry, 


46 


WOMEN'S  ATELIER  FOR  SEWING  AND  REPAIRING. 


and  I am  happy  to  say  that  our  success  seems  still  on 
the  increase.  We  have  important  commissions  in  hand, 
and  others  being  prepared,  among  them  some  of  the 
very  highest  grade,  which  we  hope  will  turn  out  to  be 
“ des  vrais  chef  d’oeuvres.”  There  is  enough  to  employ 
all  my  men  the  coming  year. 

As  to  the  men  we  brought  over  from  France,  they 
have  found  a Paradise  in  our  little  suburban  town  on 
the  Bronx  River.  They  have  settled  down  for  good ; 
and  those  who  left  families  behind  have  long  since 
brought  them  over.  Only  one  man  went  back  to 
France — not  homesick,  but  physically  sick;  and  one 
other  man  was  sent  back  because  he  was  too  fond  of 
the  bottle.  They  were  all  very  poor  when  they  landed, 
and  those  that  came  from  Aubusson  looked  more  like 
tramps  than  skillful  artisans.  Few  had  leather  shoes, 
few  had  as  much  baggage  as  would  fill  a small  hand- 
satchel.  Their  plight  in  Aubusson  was  chiefly  the  lack 
of  steady  work,  and,  of  course,  low  wages.  To-day 
they  are  all  well  dressed,  well  fed,  and  well  housed ; 
have  all  saved  some  money,  and  are  the  happiest  little 
colony  in  the  country. 


47 


ATELIERS  OF  TAPESTRY  WORKS.  REAR  VIEW  FROM  COURT. 


